Builds BJ42 To UZJ42 Build thread, V8 Engine swap, 1UZ-FE, A343F, HF1A, Electronics, etc. (3 Viewers)

[YvesNL]

Did some more sandblasting & painting in 2K:

Installed new bumpstop rubbers:

Replaced the body mounts for new ones. Bolts were very rusted and stuck in the steel "sleeve". Had to cut two off to get them separated.
I used new PU bodymounts:

I started on the transmission wiring. The ECU had two wires for the lockup solenoid, SLU- & SLU+. I assumed SLU- would be ground and the ECU would switch SLU+. For now I connected SLU- to nothing and SLU+ to the Lockup solenoid. I can easily switch these pins out on the superseal connectors.

I also added a connector between S1 & S2 so that I can fit my own shiftbox just by plugging these connectors in a custom shift box. But it will take some time before (and if) that will be finished.

In the picture below you will see two loose connectors:

The connector on the left would be connected to the "piston accumulator backpressure" valve. That is not available in this transmission. I can connect a resistor here.
The connector on the right is connected to the "Line Pressure solenoid", I can connect my own line pressure regulator here. It will be a simple microcontroller that reads the throttle position sensor and sends a PWM signal based on that. I think I will add an input that raises the line pressure, this can be a switch on the dash or activate automatically when I switch into 4WD or Low Range.

 

[YvesNL]

Last Saturday I put the Engine in and bolted it down. The transfer case & engine mounts fit perfect.
There is lot's of space between the engine and the radiator support. I might be able to use the OEM mechanical fan instead of an electric one.

The original radiator support is not as wide as it could be and offset to the left/drivers side. I think I'll build a new wider radiator mount so that I can fit a bigger radiator than stock. In this mount I can also make mounting points for a AC condenser, oil cooler, fan shroud etc.

Here's a picture:

Now lets move on to Oil, Cooling, AC and Wiring.

 

[YvesNL]

I've got some more pictures of the engine fitment with the fenders on:

Front view:

As you can see the OEM radiator mount is not centered and not as big as it could be.
I will build a new mount that is wider and will fit a standard size radiator, something like a 3 or 4 core 26*19" radiator.
This mount will also hold the AC condenser and oil cooler(s). I would prefer to use the 1UZ's mechanical fan instead of electric ones.

I'd like to mount the AC condenser and oil cooler(s) on a hinge so I can tilt them forward and flush sand & mud out of the radiator fins.

Side clearance:

I will have to tweak the left/drivers side fender just a bit to clear the power steering pump.

Here you can see the new transmission/transfer case mount in its final position (with tabs for future skidplates):

This is the new oil pan in it's final position:

Next purchase will be a radiator + condenser, I know champion makes good quality parts, but they are kind of expensive to get in Europe.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good quality radiator (and condensor)?

 

[-MaTTi-]

Have you tried Amayama, Partsouq or Toyotaoriginal.com?

 

[waiting for time]

Did you save the heater unit from the 400?

 

[YvesNL]

Have you tried Amayama, Partsouq or Toyotaoriginal.com?

Yes, I even have a "like new" copper radiator for the 40. But I want a bigger radiator to cool the big V8.
I think I'll just buy the bigger champion, pay the shipping + import taxes and fabricate a new mount.

Did you save the heater unit from the 400?

Yes, I still have the heater unit and lots of other parts from the LS400.

 

[YvesNL]

Been a while since the last update but I'm back working on the UZJ42. I've spent most time finding a radiator with transmission cooler/heater, AC condenser and transmission oil cooler. I've decided that I'm gonna remove the heater unit and replace it with a Vintage Air unit. I wanted to build something myself but it will just take too long. The vintage air unit has the fan inside the cab, that will give me some more space under the hood.

So for now, I've been fabricating a mount for the big radiator, AC condenser & transmission oil cooler. I had some 3mm plate lasercut and bend, below you can see the mockup:

Next a fan shroud was needed. One of the things I don't like is how hard it is to remove a fan when everything is tight in the engine bay. I made my fan shroud in two parts so I can easily acces the fan / belts when removed. Below you can see the two part fan shroud being fabricated:

And here is it complete & installed:

Then it was time to install the radiator & test fit. The mount uses the original mounting points, I also made two supports to the shock towers as can be seen in the pictures below.
Another nice thing is that I could make the Lexus LS400 radiator hoses work by cutting the lower hose and extending the upper hose with a water temperature sensor housing.

The AC condenser & transmission cooler are mounted on two hinges. When the radiators fill up with mud I can now easily fold them down and give all three a clean.

The radiator sits in a piece of rubber at the bottom & POM discs all round so it does not touch the steel. I still need to fabricate some small brackets and mounts but it's almost finished. All the studs & nuts are stainless, I will powdercoat the mount and this way the threads won't rust.

 

[White Stripe]

Been a while since the last update but I'm back working on the UZJ42. I've spent most time finding a radiator with transmission cooler/heater, AC condenser and transmission oil cooler. I've decided that I'm gonna remove the heater unit and replace it with a Vintage Air unit. I wanted to build something myself but it will just take too long. The vintage air unit has the fan inside the cab, that will give me some more space under the hood.

So for now, I've been fabricating a mount for the big radiator, AC condenser & transmission oil cooler. I had some 3mm plate lasercut and bend, below you can see the mockup:
View attachment 2656743

Next a fan shroud was needed. One of the things I don't like is how hard it is to remove a fan when everything is tight in the engine bay. I made my fan shroud in two parts so I can easily acces the fan / belts when removed. Below you can see the two part fan shroud being fabricated:
View attachment 2656744

And here is it complete & installed:
View attachment 2656745

Then it was time to install the radiator & test fit. The mount uses the original mounting points, I also made two supports to the shock towers as can be seen in the pictures below.
Another nice thing is that I could make the Lexus LS400 radiator hoses work by cutting the lower hose and extending the upper hose with a water temperature sensor housing.
View attachment 2656746

The AC condenser & transmission cooler are mounted on two hinges. When the radiators fill up with mud I can now easily fold them down and give all three a clean.
View attachment 2656747

The radiator sits in a piece of rubber at the bottom & POM discs all round so it does not touch the steel. I still need to fabricate some small brackets and mounts but it's almost finished. All the studs & nuts are stainless, I will powdercoat the mount and this way the threads won't rust.

I would be concerned about that fan shroud. The flat Plate is awfully close to the radiator core. The air needs room to go through the core and then go at a angle toward the fan blade area. But with the plate you have I would be concerned that the air won't have room to do that. I think it may come through the core, reflect off the flat plate, and go back out the core. I would guess you need to give the air at least 3cm between the core and the plate for air to have room to move at an angle toward the blade. Angled plate would be better.

 

[ausuzj40]

HI YvesNL

I've been following your build and I think its looking great. There is some excellent engineering going on there. I am just about to start a swap into my FJ40 using the 1uzfe and an r150f 5 speed. Id be very interested in the drawings for the sump and engine mounts if they're for sale? It would make the whole process a lot easier to get off the ground

 

[YvesNL]

The engine mounts are made using a pieces of scrap metal & a grinder. I could measure them & include angles so you have a place to start.
I'll also look up the sump drawings, I had this one laser cut & CNC bend.

 

[ausuzj40]

Sent you a PM

 

[ausuzj40]

Sent you a PM

 

[40mania]

What would a body lift help? Modify the oil pan or install lift springs and limit the uptravel.
Why not, would be good with that much power.

I installed the V8 in my '72 FJ40. I used 3" body lift and fabricated new engine and t-case mounts and raised the driveline 2+ inches. After measuring it is a fact that my "bottom out bumper pads" will bottom out completely and leave me about 3/4 inch clearance between oil pan and differential housing. I could land it hard on the front wheels and avoid damaging the pan. Looks like you might need to come up about the same 3" (if that is the route you go). Raising the engine/trans/t-case is 3 brackets/mounts plus an offset fabrication of mechanical clutch linkage. Not real difficult, especially with your background and talent. Otherwise you may end up backing up like I did prior to "raising the body and driveline mounts".
*** THAT is what a body lift will do! It beats cratering your oil pan and crank and even though your center of gravity has raised it didn't raise any higher than spring swap would raise you. And it saves changing steering angle and parts in the steering. My driveshafts survived the 3" body lift (and engine lifted just over 2") without having to lengthen them. The 3" lift spring will require driveshafts to be lengthened.

Just how I did it. Doesn't mean it is right, but it works well. If we cut nuts the V8 isn't right "politically" no matter how it is done... but Toyota did not plan at all for the V8 in the FJ40.

And I can see that you know that for sure now! Beautiful project. Nice Cruiser!!! I will watch the rest of the build to see how you will conquer it.

 

[40mania]

I made a steering box relocation bracket so the steering box won't hit the exhaust manifolds.
I don't have a picture yet, it's made from 6mm laser cut steel plate and bolts to the two existing top holes and three new ones.
The original mount bolts to the bracket, shifting it 50mm left (drivers side). Here is a simple drawing in sketchup:
View attachment 2272071
I ordered a steering universal joint from Kartek.com to help with connecting the steering box at this new angle. The smooth hole will be turned on a lathe to the correct dimension. I'll also have to make a new steering rod that clears the left (drivers) shock absorber.

I also finished mocking up and drawing the oil pan. The capacity is increased form 5.5 to 7 litres.
The right / passenger side is angled so the front driveshaft won't hit the oil pan.
The oil pan is sturdy, really sturdy, 6mm steel flange and 3mm plate sturdy.
I still have the drawings and can have another one laser cut (and welded up) if anyone needs one.
View attachment 2272073

Now that everything fits in the engine bay and everything has a bracket it was time to clean and paint the frame.
I first cleaned and degreased the frame (in- and outside) with a hot water pressure washer and some degreaser:
View attachment 2272075

After cleaning there followed a lot of hours with steel wire brush on an angle grinder & cordless drill.
Not a fun job, but has to be done. All loose flaky rust was removed from the inside (there wasn't much).

After wire wheeling I applied rust preventive primer:
View attachment 2272074
You will notice some overspray on the axle and tires, these were still covered in dirt and grease. They will clean up easy.
I covered important lines, cables, etc in aluminum foil. Not the brakelines, I'm going to replace these anyway.

After a cure time of +/-24 hours I applied a 2K RAL9005 (black) paint in several layers:
View attachment 2272076

The result is very nice. I coated the inside of the frame with a rust preventive wax coating to protect it. It's spray-able and dries, so dirt won't stick to it.
Large area's around the holes were covered in the red rust preventive paint and black 2K paint before the wax coating.
I sandblasted the VIN and the area around it and masked it. After all the paint was dry I removed the tape and applied 2K clearcoat over the VIN.

I hope from here I will only bolt things to the frame instead of taking it apart everytime.

Very beautiful job! You are quite savvy!

 

[40mania]

Had time to do some things, I started on putting in the brake lines and the load sensing proportioning valve.
I had some Stainless Steel brackets lasercut, put rivnuts in them and mounted the brake-lines to these brackets.
The brackets are mounted with an m8x30mm bolt and a 12mm spacer.
View attachment 2340449

The top and bottom m6 holes will receive clamps for an AN6 fuel feed and return line:
View attachment 2340448

I also started thinking about fuel starvation at the fuel pump. Cut out some cardboard and started measuring, this is the largest box I can fit in through the existing hole. I will use 2 baffles and some small holes (and maybe a hinge) to keep the fuel in.
View attachment 2340447

I'm curious about the copper brake lines... normally mild steel is used for the lines because of pressure. The strength of copper is much weaker in comparison to the mild steel. I would be concerned about rupturing a line with the copper line?

 

[40mania]

Last Saturday I put the Engine in and bolted it down. The transfer case & engine mounts fit perfect.
There is lot's of space between the engine and the radiator support. I might be able to use the OEM mechanical fan instead of an electric one.

The original radiator support is not as wide as it could be and offset to the left/drivers side. I think I'll build a new wider radiator mount so that I can fit a bigger radiator than stock. In this mount I can also make mounting points for a AC condenser, oil cooler, fan shroud etc.

Here's a picture:
View attachment 2490513

Now lets move on to Oil, Cooling, AC and Wiring.

Very nice fitting. It looks great! I agree that your engineering is excellence in motion. There are many ways to skin a cat. It appears you may have found the best way. My vote?

Fantastic!

 

[YvesNL]

Body lift would've certainly worked with all the stock parts like the oil pan. I choose the other route, I have build a new much deeper oil pan that will hold more oil & offset for the driveshaft. On the front side I made the oil pan as shallow as possible and I think it will clear the diff under full compression.

These copper brake lines are used a lot here in the Netherlands. They are easy to work with and I didn't hear a story about one rupturing.

It's been a while since I've worked on the UZJ42 but I started again last weekend. I'm replacing some radiator mounts by rubber bushings and am finishing the radiator mount.

@40mania , do you have a Build Thread?

 

[waiting for time]

Copper is good For brake lines. The main issue is fatigue, you have to make sure the lines don’t vibrate to much and a transition from body to frame needs something like a spiral to transfer the vibrations and movements over a larger area.
I like to use Cunifer or Cupro-nickel lines. They are made from copper with 10% nickel and 1,4% steel. They are stronger and less sensitive to fatigue but don’t rust like steel.

 

[plink01]

Mate your build is incredible. Your doing an awesome job! Keep up the good work!

 

[YvesNL]

Finally some time again, I'm back at it again every weekend.
I've ordered lots of AN lines & fittings, AC components, volts, brackets, etc.

Finished welding on the radiator mount, might add some studs for mounting things like the oil filter. The radiator now sits on two rubber mounts, there will be two more added on the sides. In the picture below you can also see the hinges so I can fold away the AC condenser & ATF cooler to clean the radiator.

In the picture below you can see the fully assembled & primed mount. Note that there are no rubber mounts on the sides yet, these will follow in a few weeks.

Picture from the front:

I was able to cut up the LS400 top radiator hose & use a temperature sender insert to make them work. The insert has a 1/8'' thread for the temperature sensor.

Only two small pieces had to be cut off the ends of the lower radiator hose, its close to the belt (12mm/1/2'') but does fit.

Then I installed fenders & front bib, it all fit's & clears.

I also worked on the shift linkages for the transmission & transfer case. It's actually really close to being finished but I haven't taken a single picture in the process, they will be here soon.